News
Karine Jean-Pierre makes history in WH briefing, but skips over LGBTQ press
WH spokesperson first LGBTQ woman to hold briefing

White House Deputy Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre made history on Wednesday by being the first Black woman in decades and the first openly LGBTQ woman to conduct a White House briefing, although she declined to mark the occasion by calling on the LGBTQ press in the room.
Jean-Pierre, asked during the White House briefing about the significance of her conducting it, recognized the milestone but also downplayed it in favor of praising the Biden administration.
“I appreciate the historic nature; I really do,” Jean-Pierre said. “But I believe that…being behind this podium, being in this room, being in this building is not about one person: It’s about what we do on behalf of the American people. Clearly, the president believes representation matters, and I appreciate him giving me this opportunity, and it’s another reason why we are so proud and this is the most diverse administration in history.”
Jean-Pierre, after repeating that it wasn’t about her, added “We’re going to be truthful, we’re going to be transparent and that’s the way, I believe, the president would want us to communicate to the American people.”
Many of the questions Jean-Pierre took were on new reports of intelligence the coronavirus may have been the product of lab engineering in Wuhan, China, which she addressed by deferring to an ongoing Biden administration review of the matter. Jean-Pierre, in response to another question about President Biden’s meeting with the George Floyd family on Tuesday, said the occasion was “deeply personal” for him.
Jean-Pierre is not the first openly LGBTQ person to conduct a White House press briefing. That distinction belongs to Eric Schultz, who was deputy White House press secretary during the Obama years and conducted his first briefing in 2015.
Other openly gay administration officials have served as principals during the White House briefing and answered questions, including acting Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell during the Trump administration and current Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
Jean-Pierre, however, declined to mark the occasion by calling on the Washington Blade, which is the only LGBTQ outlet in the White House briefing room and in the seating rotation under coronavirus restrictions today to ask a question. The Blade was present in the room for its turn in the rotation and its reporter’s hand was raised for an inquiry the entire time.
Had the Blade asked a question, the topic would have been the upcoming Pride month and whether the White House would restore the practice during the Obama years of holding a reception, as well as any plans to light up the White House in rainbow colors as the Obama administration did in 2015.
Matt Hill, a White House spokesperson, was vague last week in response to a Blade inquiry via email over Pride plans within the Biden administration.
“President Biden is proud to have taken executive action since his first day in office to champion full equality and strengthen civil rights for LGBTQ Americans,” Hill said. “From reversing the transgender military ban, urging Congress to send the Equality Act to his desk, preventing discrimination in housing, healthcare, and lending, President Biden has sent a clear message to LGBTQ people at home and around the world: he has your back. During Pride Month, the Biden-Harris Administration will continue advancing the President’s commitment to equality and equity and we look forward to sharing more about our efforts throughout June.”
Another question the Blade would have asked — as the number of anti-trans laws enacted by state legislatures this year continues to pile up, including a measure last week in Tennessee requiring businesses to post signage if they have restroom policies respecting the gender identity of transgender people — is whether the Justice Department has given the White House any heads up about upcoming legal action against these measures.
Other journalists in the briefing room aside from the Blade also weren’t able to get a question in during the briefing the same day, including reporters from the New York Post, the Daily Mail and a representative from the foreign press. Although the Blade attempted to get a question before the briefing closed by shouting a request, another reporter from a conservative outlet largely drowned that out by interrupting at the end of the briefing by shouting questions on assertions Anthony Fauci perjured himself in testimony before Congress.
World Pride 2025
Pabllo Vittar to perform at WorldPride
Brazilian drag queen, singer, joined Madonna on stage in 2024 Rio concert

A Brazilian drag queen and singer who performed with Madonna at her 2024 concert on Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana Beach will perform at WorldPride.
The Capital Pride Alliance on Thursday announced Pabllo Vittar will perform on the Main Stage of the main party that will take place on June 7 at DCBX (1235 W St., N.E.) in Northeast D.C.
Vittar and Anitta, a Brazilian pop star who is bisexual, on May 4, 2024, joined Madonna on stage at her free concert, which was the last one of her Celebration Tour. Authorities estimated 1.6 million people attended.
Federal Government
RFK Jr.’s HHS report pushes therapy, not medical interventions, for trans youth
‘Discredited junk science’ — GLAAD

A 409-page report released Thursday by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services challenges the ethics of medical interventions for youth experiencing gender dysphoria, the treatments that are often collectively called gender-affirming care, instead advocating for psychotherapy alone.
The document comes in response to President Donald Trump’s executive order barring the federal government from supporting gender transitions for anyone younger than 19.
“Our duty is to protect our nation’s children — not expose them to unproven and irreversible medical interventions,” National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya said in a statement. “We must follow the gold standard of science, not activist agendas.”
While the report does not constitute clinical guidance, its findings nevertheless conflict with not just the recommendations of LGBTQ advocacy groups but also those issued by organizations with relevant expertise in science and medicine.
The American Medical Association, for instance, notes that “empirical evidence has demonstrated that trans and non-binary gender identities are normal variations of human identity and expression.”
Gender-affirming care for transgender youth under standards widely used in the U.S. includes supportive talk therapy along with — in some but not all cases — puberty blockers or hormone treatment.
“The suggestion that someone’s authentic self and who they are can be ‘changed’ is discredited junk science,” GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis said in a statement. “This so-called guidance is grossly misleading and in direct contrast to the recommendation of every leading health authority in the world. This report amounts to nothing more than forcing the same discredited idea of conversion therapy that ripped families apart and harmed gay, lesbian, and bisexual young people for decades.”
GLAAD further notes that the “government has not released the names of those involved in consulting or authoring this report.”
Janelle Perez, executive director of LPAC, said, “For decades, every major medical association–including the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics–have affirmed that medical care is the only safe and effective treatment for transgender youth experiencing gender dysphoria.
“This report is simply promoting conversion therapy by a different name – and the American people know better. We know that conversion therapy isn’t actually therapy – it isolates and harms kids, scapegoats parents, and divides families through blame and rejection. These tactics have been used against gay kids for decades, and now the same people want to use them against transgender youth and their families.
“The end result here will be a devastating denial of essential health care for transgender youth, replaced by a dangerous practice that every major U.S. medical and mental health association agree promotes anxiety, depression, and increased risk of suicidal thoughts and attempts.
“Like being gay or lesbian, being transgender is not a choice, and no amount of pressure can force someone to change who they are. We also know that 98% of people who receive transition-related health care continue to receive that health care throughout their lifetime. Trans health care is health care.”
“Today’s report seeks to erase decades of research and learning, replacing it with propaganda. The claims in today’s report would rip health care away from kids and take decision-making out of the hands of parents,” said Shannon Minter, legal director of NCLR. “It promotes the same kind of conversion therapy long used to shame LGBTQ+ people into hating themselves for being unable to change something they can’t change.”
“Like being gay or lesbian, being transgender is not a choice—it’s rooted in biology and genetics,” Minter said. “No amount or talk or pressure will change that.”
Human Rights Campaign Chief of Staff Jay Brown released a statement: “Trans people are who we are. We’re born this way. And we deserve to live our best lives and have a fair shot and equal opportunity at living a good life.
“This report misrepresents the science that has led all mainstream American medical and mental health professionals to declare healthcare for transgender youth to be best practice and instead follows a script predetermined not by experts but by Sec. Kennedy and anti-equality politicians.”
The White House
Trump nominates Mike Waltz to become next UN ambassador
Former Fla. congressman had been national security advisor

President Donald Trump on Thursday announced he will nominate Mike Waltz to become the next U.S. ambassador to the U.N.
Waltz, a former Florida congressman, had been the national security advisor.
Trump announced the nomination amid reports that Waltz and his deputy, Alex Wong, were going to leave the administration after Waltz in March added a journalist to a Signal chat in which he, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and other officials discussed plans to attack Houthi rebels in Yemen.
“I am pleased to announce that I will be nominating Mike Waltz to be the next United States ambassador to the United Nations,” said Trump in a Truth Social post that announced Waltz’s nomination. “From his time in uniform on the battlefield, in Congress and, as my National Security Advisor, Mike Waltz has worked hard to put our nation’s Interests first. I know he will do the same in his new role.”
Trump said Secretary of State Marco Rubio will serve as interim national security advisor, “while continuing his strong leadership at the State Department.”
“Together, we will continue to fight tirelessly to make America, and the world, safe again,” said Trump.
Trump shortly after his election nominated U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) to become the next U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Trump in March withdrew her nomination in order to ensure Republicans maintained their narrow majority in the U.S. House of Representatives.
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